Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Trailer park mom

So here is today's Walmart experience. Every time I shop there, I feel like a trailer park mom. I had to buy some clothes for Dova and went to the super cheap $2.88 knit shirts and pants section. There was another mom there with 3 girls, most of whom were wearing the same type of clothes that were on the rack already. In fact some of them looked like the clothes that I got for Dova last spring when the previous year's lot went on sale for $2 each. But these poor girls clothes were all dirty and raggedy. I'm thinking what am I doing? I shouldn't be associating Dova with these (literally) poor girls!! I should move away from this rack immediately!! But of course I couldn't resist the cheap price and got her 2 sets.

Speaking of those $2 clothes.. That was yet another classic Walmart experience. This was during lunchtime at my last job, where I had to meet Dova at 12:30pm. The lines are always long at Walmart, and I usually get into line by 12:15. This time, because I so carefully picked out a bunch of these $2 clothes in all different sizes, I ran about 5 minutes late. So I get into line, and immediately some lady comes from the side and cuts in front of me. OK, I let her go. But then the annoyances start. She keeps fidgeting around and keeps bumping into the front of my cart. She keeps shooting me these dirty looks, even though I am not moving my cart around and she is the one bumping into it. She picks out a gift card from the rack too, just to add time to her checkout. The cashier is totally clueless and slow and has to ask help on the gift card. Then he is done finally with her and moves on to me. Then the lady says, where's my receipt? The cashier insists that he gave it to her and it was probably in one of the bags. She checks ALL her bags and her purse but can't find it. He insists that he gave it to her. Meanwhile I'm checking my watch and it is already 12:30. Finally she leaves. At the end of my checkout, I go to swipe my card, but suddenly the receipt prints out before I even do it. I know immediately what happened. My order was tacked onto to the previous lady's card!! Now, here I was thinking, that would be just rewards for that lady being so annoying, but really I couldn't be that dishonest, so I say, that's not my receipt. The guy looks at it and sees that both orders are on it. The manager has to come over to figure out how to void my purchases off the other receipt and finally I say "I have an appointment, I have to go. Can I leave this here and buy it later?" As I walk away, totally late, I kick myself for not just taking the receipt and my merchandise, sticking it to that lady, and being done with the whole thing. What would you do? It was $28 worth of stuff. Anyway, the story has more!! I go back to the store after I see Dova (luckily, I was already in slacker mode at work) and go to the same clueless cashier and wait in line. He rings up all the items again and I go to take out my wallet and I realize that I left it in the car!! So I have to leave the stuff again and go get my wallet. It's like these clothes were just not meant to be bought by me!! Finally, I go back, luckily there was no line this time and I finally get to buy the stuff fair and square. Needless to say, I avoided this cashier like the plague after that.

2 comments :

Anonymous said...

Isn't that the second time some annoying inconsiderate bufoon treated you that way, and the second time they were almost charged for your stuff by accident? Or has Karma visited you once again? It seems like a most ironic coincidence?

Anonymous said...

Ok...you asked....I will weigh in. (as if anyone cares about my opinion :-)

I'm not paragon of virtue, but I'd say you did exactly the right thing. I know many people who would have looked the other way when that other woman's receipt popped out and would have chalked up to "sticking it to the man!" (I just like to say that...i don't know that it's relevent in this case :-)

But the sad fact is that if people can not be basically honest in out world, we will end up living in a very unfriendly and uncontrolled jungle....eat or be eaten. (no fun at all)

We could not have enough police to protect us....half of them would be on the take as well....

I guess I believe in personal responsibility....so each of us must take that duty of honesty on ourselves. (so why just me....what about the other 6 billion people of the world???)

My answer....we should all try to change the world and help others and try to make it a better place....but the one place I know we can affect is ourselves....so we need to start there where we can have 100% success. (lead by example is a great way to live too)

{soap box mode off}

Just remember what I first said....I'm no way near perfect...I guess none of us are....we can only try our best! (yikes..sorry for the speech! :-)